Welcome to the third iteration of The Athletic’s annual defense ranking tiers. This year’s version was probably the hardest so far because of a continually shrinking talent discrepancy between the haves and the have-nots on the back end.
There’s a surprising shortage of teams with truly high-end blue lines. A lot of teams boasting stars aren’t loaded with as much depth, and very deep blue lines are often missing a game-breaking No. 1. Even some of the teams that rank highest in this project look like they’re missing a piece — or are one key injury away from entering choppy waters.
The middle class, meanwhile, is extremely crowded: Very little difference separates the NHL’s seventh- and 18th-best blue lines, making it a bit difficult to separate each team here into distinct tiers.
Overall, we leaned on a combination of statistics, the eye test and industry feedback. Keep in mind that blue lines are sorted into tiers strictly based on their projection for 2025-26 — we’re not factoring for future potential at all.
(Note: A player’s name will have an asterisk if they are currently injured but expected back in the lineup relatively soon.)
Tier 1: High-endColorado Avalanche
Devon Toews – Cale Makar
Samuel Girard – Josh Manson
Sam Malinski – Brent Burns
Extras: Ilya Solovyov, Keaton Middleton
Makar and Toews are widely considered the NHL’s best defensive pairing, and for good reason. At 26, Makar already has two Norris Trophies, a Conn Smythe and a Stanley Cup on his resume. He’s been a Norris finalist five years in a row, a feat no other active defenseman can claim. Toews, meanwhile, is a No. 1-caliber defenseman in his own right because of his excellent all-around game.
Burns is a nice pick up to solidify the right-side depth (and perhaps take some penalty-killing workload off of Makar or Toews) and Malinski is a talented, up-and-coming, third-pair puck-mover.
With all that said, this blue line isn’t perfect. Girard and Manson form a good, but unspectacular, second pair that has struggled at times to stay healthy. This group is also a little thin on the left: Malinski is a right-handed player who’ll likely be forced to play on his off side.
Florida Panthers
Gustav Forsling – Aaron Ekblad
Niko Mikkola – Seth Jones
Dmitry Kulikov – Jeff Petry
Extra: Uvis Balinskis
Adding Jones at the cost of their backup goalie and a first-round pick, with $2.5 million in salary retention, was obviously a huge coup last season, but it’ll also be a gift that keeps giving for the Panthers. Jones is signed for another five seasons at a $7 million cap hit that is only going to get more reasonable as the cap continues to rise.
The rest of the cast is similar to the crew that won it all in June, save for Jeff Petry playing the cheap-contract-veteran role that Nate Schmidt served in a year ago.
And for all the miles on his body, Ekblad is still just 29 years old and has more help than ever with Jones there to log big minutes and Forsling continuing to emerge as one of the league’s best shutdown D in a system that plays to his strengths.
Dallas Stars
Esa Lindell – Miro Heiskanen
Thomas Harley – Nils Lundkvist
Lian Bichsel – Ilya Lyubushkin
Extras: Alexander Petrovic, Vladislav Kolyachonok
There are certainly some question marks on Dallas’ right side, but we felt the Stars’ top-end is so elite – Heiskanen, Harley, Lindell is arguably the best top-three in the NHL – that they belong in Tier 1 anyway.
Dallas was the only team besides Florida to have three defensemen appear on The Athletic’s Player Tiers project. Heiskanen is one of the league’s best all-around No. 1 defensemen. Harley, 24, is a superstar in his own right, finishing seventh in Norris Trophy voting last year and impressing for Team Canada at the 4 Nations Face-off.
If Heiskanen and Harley stick to playing on separate pairs, the Stars can have a top-10 defenseman patrolling the ice for 40-45 minutes per game.
Lindell deserves more credit as a shutdown ace, too. Lindell handles very ugly, difficult matchups and usually comes out on top, regardless of who he’s partnered with.
Is this group a bit lacking in depth after those names? No doubt — they’d really benefit from another No. 4/5 on the right side. But for those claiming that the Stars’ blue line is too top-heavy to warrant Tier 1 status, it’s worth remembering that they beat Colorado in the playoffs despite Heiskanen missing the entire series.
Carolina Hurricanes
Jaccob Slavin – Sean Walker
K’Andre Miller – Jalen Chatfield
Alexander Nikishin – Shayne Gostisbehere
Extra: Mike Reilly
Yet another interesting offseason blue line makeover for the Canes, who lost vets Brent Burns and Dmitry Orlov in favor of a much younger look centered on Miller and Calder candidate Nikishin.
Both Burns (who’s now 40) and Orlov were clearly suffering from some age-related decline last year, so in that sense, the refresh could serve as an upgrade, depending on how well the newcomers acclimate to coach Rod Brind’Amour’s system.
They join a strong core led by Slavin — one of the best defensive players in the league — and the underrated trio of Chatfield, Gostisbehere and Walker, who all handily outperform their average annual values.
Whether it’s enough to better handle their nemesis (the third round) will hinge on how ready for top-four duty Miller and Nikishin are by the spring.
Quinn Hughes is a perennial Norris Trophy candidate on the Canucks’ back end. (Brett Holmes / Getty Images)
Tier 2: High-endVancouver Canucks
Quinn Hughes – Filip Hronek
Marcus Pettersson – Tyler Myers
Derek Forbort – Elias Pettersson
Extras: Victor Mancini, Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Tom Willander
Hughes, a perennial Norris candidate, and Filip Hronek, an excellent No. 2 defender in his own right, are one of the best top pairs in the league, both statistically and by the eye test. Crucially, the Canucks appear to finally have a solid bottom four to complement their elite first pair.
Last year, Vancouver overemphasized size and physicality when building its second and third pairs, which led to a bottom four that was slow, lacked puck-moving skills, and was often hemmed in defensively. The Canucks have since made several moves to renovate that group. Marcus Pettersson’s presence as a valuable No. 3 has solidified the second pair and unlocked a steadier version of Myers, too.
Vancouver has an exciting crop of prospect defensemen who are ready to make an impact as well. Elias Pettersson, 21, was a third-pair standout down the stretch after being named an AHL All-Star and will be a full-time NHL contributor this year. Mancini, acquired in the J.T. Miller trade, is a 6-foot-3 defenseman who can skate like the wind and turned heads in preseason. Tom Willander, the club’s No. 11 selection in 2023, could graduate to the NHL sometime this season, too.
Washington Capitals
Martin Fehervary – John Carlson
Rasmus Sandin – Matt Roy
Jakob Chychrun – Trevor van Riemsdyk
Extras: Declan Chisholm, Dylan McIlrath
Last year’s bold blue line makeover helped vault the Caps back to respectability, thanks in part also to Fehervary and Chychrun proving surprisingly adept at executing in coach Spencer Carbery’s system.
Roy likely has more to give after missing games due to injury last season, and Sandin’s continued push for top-four minutes will be a key factor, too. So there is upside here.
Carlson turns 36 this season, so the clock is ticking. But this is a sneakily deep, capable and well-rounded sixsome — making this one of the NHL’s only teams with, arguably, six top-four-level D. Whether it’s good enough at the highest end to handle the best teams in the conference, however, is a fair question after a lackluster playoff showing.
Edmonton Oilers
Mattias Ekholm – Evan Bouchard
Darnell Nurse – Jake Walman*
Brett Kulak – Ty Emberson
Extras: Troy Stecher, Alec Regula
Walman’s skating, puck-moving, and secondary offensive punch were precisely what the Oilers needed to round out their defense down the stretch last year. He’ll likely shift to his off-side and drive Edmonton’s second pair this season, which will have a positive knock-on effect on Nurse. Walman and Nurse’s results were terrific together in a small sample: 63 percent of shots and a 8-2 goal differential.
Bouchard is one of the NHL’s most polarizing defensemen, but there’s no denying his elite play-driving numbers on the top pair — even in non-Connor McDavid and non-Leon Draisaitl minutes. It’s also a nice luxury to have Kulak, a low-end, top-four-caliber player, as excellent insurance on the third pair.
Ekholm is the big wild card here; is he about to lose a significant step because of his age? The 35-year-old didn’t look right when he returned from injury in the playoffs, though he may have rushed to return and been less healthy than he is now at the start of a new season. If Ekholm can still contribute at a top-pair level, this is a solidly above-average blue line. If not, there could be issues.
Winnipeg Jets
Josh Morrissey – Dylan DeMelo
Dylan Samberg* – Neal Pionk
Hadyn Fleury – Luke Schenn
Extras: Logan Stanley, Colin Miller
Samberg’s breakout as an elite shutdown defenseman last year was a game-changer for Winnipeg’s blue line. He is a lockdown ace, a good puck-mover, and has underrated supporting offensive IQ. He’s Winnipeg’s equivalent to the Chris Tanev/Ryan McDonagh/Travis Sanheim mold of player.
Morrissey, who has finished top-seven in Norris voting for three consecutive years, and Samberg are an enviable one-two punch. The rest of Winnipeg’s blue line is solid, albeit unspectacular.
Samberg will be out of commission for the first 6-8 weeks because of injury. That’s a devastating blow because Pionk’s second-pair success is somewhat dependent on having Samberg as his partner. The Jets’ blue line will be significantly challenged in the first several weeks, but if they can weather the storm of Samberg’s absence early, they should be in good shape the rest of the way.
Montreal Canadiens
Mike Matheson – Noah Dobson
Kaiden Guhle – Lane Hutson
Arber Xhekaj – Alexandre Carrier
Extra: Jayden Struble
Dobson serves as a fascinating addition to an already intriguing D core, with the potential for a 1-2 punch with Hutson that will make this back end an offensive nightmare for teams to handle night to night.
The Canadiens have some other nice, underrated pieces here, too, led by Guhle, who at 23 years old could take another step if healthy all year. Guhle’s shutdown game will be crucial to help this group, which is otherwise tilted toward offense and puck possession, hold up defensively.
Dobson had a tough season last year, but if he can step into top-pair minutes, it will mean others like Matheson and Carrier slot into roles they can excel in, making the position one of Montreal’s key strengths — and this group, potentially, one of the top blue lines in the league.
Ottawa Senators
Jake Sanderson – Artem Zub
Thomas Chabot – Nick Jensen
Tyler Kleven – Jordan Spence
Extras: Nikolas Matinpalo, Carter Yakemchuk, Donovan Sebrango
With Sanderson’s swift ascension to a high-end No. 1 D, Ottawa’s blue line has tipped over into the above-average category — with further room to grow.
Our model has this back end as the NHL’s seventh-best from a defensive perspective, a credit mainly to Zub and Sanderson but also the massive upgrade Spence should provide over departed vet Travis Hamonic.
Once top prospect Yakemchuk is ready, things could get even more interesting, as it’s plausible the Senators could boast one of the East’s best blue lines in the coming years.
Buffalo Sabres
Bowen Byram – Rasmus Dahlin
Owen Power* – Michael Kesselring*
Mattias Samuelsson* – Conor Timmins
Extras: Ryan Johnson, Zachary Jones, Jacob Bryson
On paper, this could be one of the East’s top blue lines this year and one of the reasons for (finally) some sliver of hope in Buffalo. But we’re being cautious here given, well … everything that’s happened in Sabresland.
We’re high on the addition of Kesselring, who fills what was a massive right-side void last season, and Dahlin remains one of the best defensemen in the league. Better health from Samuelsson should help, too, and Timmins is a cromulent bottom-pair puck mover.
What Buffalo is waiting on is a next step from Power, the 2021 No. 1 pick. If he can emerge as an elite option alongside Dahlin, the Sabres could finally take a big step toward relevance.
Toronto Maple Leafs
Jake McCabe – Christopher Tanev
Morgan Rielly – Brandon Carlo
Oliver Ekman-Larsson – Simon Benoit
Extras: Philippe Myers, Henry Thrun
What we’re now calling the “Tree-fence” due to GM Brad Treliving’s love for length on the back end is also long on veteran savvy, willingness to eat pucks in front of the net, and contract term.
There aren’t going to be many Norris votes handed out here — in fact, the Leafs’ blue line was the lowest scoring of any in the league last season, getting just 7.9 percent of their goals from the D – but it’s a strong defensive group led by a top pair that handled tough matchups well.
The Leafs are also banking on a rebound from Rielly, who will be back on PP1 duties with Mitch Marner gone and needs to be more dangerous offensively to earn his $7.5 million cap hit. A full season of deadline acquisition Carlo as his partner, and OEL serving up strong minutes on the third pair, will give this group some nice veteran depth.
They still lack a true No. 1 and aren’t a great puck-moving group, however, which is part of what has made handling a team like the Panthers in the playoffs such a hurdle.
Minnesota Wild
Jonas Brodin* – Brock Faber
Zeev Buium – Jared Spurgeon
Jake Middleton – Zach Bogosian
Extras: David Jiricek, Daemon Hunt, Carson Lambos
Two X-factors will determine how well Minnesota’s blue line performs this season: health and the rookie Buium.
On paper, this is a deep, talented defense that skates well, defends hard, and can move the puck. However, Brodin and Spurgeon have missed 52 and 82 games respectively over the last two years because of various injuries. Those two staying healthy is key to Minnesota’s top-four being a legitimate strength, especially because it would lessen Faber’s excessive workload, which would help him drive results more in line with a credible No. 1 defenseman.
Buium, meanwhile, is one of the best prospects in the league and has a legitimate chance to be a Calder finalist this year. There’s a chance he can instantly deliver top-end offensive value at even strength and on the power play, but he’s still only 19, so there could always be some bumps in the road.
Vegas Golden Knights
Brayden McNabb – Shea Theodore
Noah Hanifin – Zach Whitecloud
Jeremy Lauzon – Kaedan Korczak
Extra: Ben Hutton
The loss of Alex Pietrangelo is a huge blow — it singlehandedly bumped the Golden Knights down from Tier 1 — but this is still a sturdy group, provided Theodore can stay healthy.
Theodore and Hanifin are a potent one-two punch. McNabb, meanwhile, is one of the NHL’s most underrated shutdown defensemen – his plus-11 Defensive Rating last year ranked in the 98th percentile of all blue liners, according to The Athletic Dom Luszczyszyn’s model.
We’re also betting that one of Whitecloud or Korczak will excel in a full-time top-four role. Whitecloud played nearly 500 five-on-five minutes with Hanifin last year. In that sample, the duo controlled a dominant 58 percent of scoring chances and 63 percent of goals. Korczak, 24, is a breakout candidate. He’s a big, smooth-skating defensive defenseman who drove really promising results in sheltered minutes last year.
The biggest risk to Vegas’ backend is Theodore’s injury history. He’s played fewer than 70 games in three consecutive years, and each time he’s injured, the Golden Knights’ blue line suffers without his speed, puck-moving, and offense.
Will the Zach Werenski Show continue for the Blue Jackets this year? ( (Len Redkoles / NHLI via Getty Images)
Tier 3: Middle of the packNew Jersey Devils
Jonas Siegenthaler – Dougie Hamilton
Luke Hughes – Brett Pesce
Brenden Dillon – Simon Nemec
Extras: Johnathan Kovacevic (IR), Seamus Casey
The Devils’ back end has plenty of depth, especially if youngsters Nemec and Casey continue to develop into NHL talents. They should get a chance to show they’re ready for more with Kovacevic sidelined with a knee injury to start the year.
Finding minutes for everyone could be a challenge once healthy, and it feels like at some point New Jersey would be wise to deal from such a position of abundance to add up front. They have two strong defensive stoppers in Siegenthaler and Pesce, even with Kovacevic out.
It’s fair to wonder, however, if New Jersey has a true No. 1, now that Hamilton is 32 years old with several injuries in recent years.
For now, the big questions are how Hamilton bounces back and whether the development of Hughes and the other up-and-comers pushes some of the veterans into lesser roles. But there’s a lot to like here even if that doesn’t happen.
Columbus Blue Jackets
Zach Werenski – Dante Fabbro
Ivan Provorov – Damon Severson
Denton Mateychuk – Erik Gudbranson
Extra: Jake Christiansen
Last season was The Werenski Show in a big way, as he carried the underdog Blue Jackets on many nights en route to piling up 82 points in 81 games and finishing as the Norris Trophy runner-up. (He even finished seventh in Hart voting.)
If that’s the new normal, it’s a heckuva pillar for this organization to build around.
Waiver claim Fabbro proved a top-pair revelation alongside Werenski’s heroics, too, and Provorov-Severson is a meh second pair, albeit at an oversized cap hit.
The wild card here is Mateychuk, who got his feet wet in 45 games as a 20-year-old last season and even spent some time in the top four. He’s undersized, but has enormous potential to be a difference-maker once he fully acclimates to the NHL.
If he takes that next step this season, bump up Columbus a few more spots in these rankings.
St. Louis Blues
Cam Fowler – Colton Parayko
Philip Broberg – Justin Faulk
Tyler Tucker – Logan Mailloux
Extra: Matthew Kessel
Remember a couple of years ago when the Blues had one of the league’s worst left-side defenses? That has become a strength in quick order with Broberg’s breakout as a stud, two-way, top-four defenseman with size, range and plus skating ability, and the home-run acquisition of Fowler. Fowler scored 41 points in 58 games for the Blues between the regular season and playoffs, building strong chemistry with Parayko.
We are factoring in some aging risk as Fowler and Faulk are approaching their mid-30s and Parayko is 32. And while Parayko’s coming off an excellent campaign, this blue line doesn’t have a superstar, Norris-contending No. 1 defenseman. But overall, this is a solid blue line that delivered elite defensive results under Montgomery. If they can sustain those results and/or if Mailloux breaks out, the Blues’ blue line could become Tier 2-worthy.
Utah Mammoth
Mikhail Sergachev – John Marino
Ian Cole – Sean Durzi
Nate Schmidt – Olli Maatta
Extras: Dmitri Simashev, Maveric Lamoureux, Juuso Valimaki
GM Bill Armstrong made big splashes to upgrade Utah’s blue line ahead of last season, but we haven’t gotten a true idea of what the revamped unit actually looks like because Durzi (30 games played) and Marino (35 games played) missed so much time with injury.
Sergachev is a credible No. 1, and Marino and Durzi are capable second-pair quality defensemen, but this backend is missing a real, high-end No. 2 defenseman behind Sergachev. The Mammoth have a luxury of excellent depth options between Schmidt (who should help replace the loss of Kessselring), Maatta, and Cole, so we could see Utah deploying two bottom-four pairs that play relatively equal minutes behind the Sergachev-led top pair, rather than distinct, clearly separated “second” and “third” pairs, similar to last season.
There’s room for upside with Utah’s blue line if Simashev, the No. 6 pick in 2023, surprises and provides top-four value ahead of schedule, but that remains to be seen.
Boston Bruins
Mason Lohrei – Charlie McAvoy
Hampus Lindholm – Andrew Peeke
Nikita Zadorov – Henri Jokiharju
Extra: Jordan Harris
How the mighty have fallen.
The Bruins appeared set to be their usual dependable defensive selves a year ago, but disaster struck on multiple fronts as they dramatically crashed out of the ranks of playoff contenders. McAvoy and Lindholm played just 50 and 17 games, respectively; Brandon Carlo got dealt to division rival Toronto; Zadorov never quite lived up to his beefy new deal; and youngster Lohrei struggled with too heavy of a load too soon as the carnage unfolded around him.
The potential for a bounce-back is here, with a healthy McAvoy and Lindholm, but there’s also considerable concern that this group is far more exposed with the team’s suddenly very porous look up front. They’ll need those two to do some very heavy lifting to course correct this season, and it may simply be too much to ask.
Tampa Bay Lightning
Victor Hedman – J.J. Moser
Ryan McDonagh – Erik Cernak
Emil Lilleberg – Darren Raddysh
Extra: Max Crozier
Even as he approaches his 35th birthday, Hedman remains an elite mountain of a man, someone who singlehandedly pulls this cast up the rankings with his HHOF-level play. McDonagh, too, remains a key cog even at his advanced age, as he and Cernak have shown a nice ability to keep eating ugly minutes and come out on top.
As long as the Bolts’ graybeards can still be as effective as they have been in big minutes, Tampa should be okay on the back end. Whether or not “okay” is good enough to do any damage in the postseason is a fair question, as the Lightning haven’t been out of the first round since 2022. We certainly saw Florida’s forecheck expose their lack of speed and puck-moving on the blue line last spring.
The loss of Nick Perbix’s 14 minutes a night shouldn’t sting too badly, but with the Lightning’s other options being relatively nondescript, it’s hard to forecast any kind of move up or down from the mushy middle here.
Adam Fox helps form a terrific first pair for the Rangers. The rest gets ugly. (Ishika Samant / Getty Images)
Tier 4: Question marksNew York Rangers
Vladislav Gavrikov – Adam Fox
Carson Soucy – Will Borgen
Urho Vaakanainen – Braden Schneider
Extras: Matthew Robertson, Scott Morrow
Terrific first pair. Ugly after that.
That about sums up the Rangers’ back-end makeover, which saw K’Andre Miller shipped to Carolina and Gavrikov sign on a massive UFA pact. Gavrikov’s terrific defensive abilities should mesh well with Fox’s high end freelancing offensively, but cobbling together two decent pairings behind them may be a challenge.
Soucy, in particular, struggled after a late-season trade from Vancouver, and you may see Schneider, entering his fifth season, pick up closer to second-pair minutes as the season progresses.
Morrow, meanwhile, could be interesting to watch after he had a cup of coffee in the NHL with the Hurricanes last year before being moved in the Miller deal. He should be next man up whenever there are injuries and would introduce more finesse into a group that could really use another threat.
Nashville Predators
Nicolas Hague* – Roman Josi
Brady Skjei – Nick Perbix
Adam Wilsby – Justin Barron
Extras: Spencer Stastney, Nick Blankenburg, Tanner Molendyk
The Preds’ blue line has talent, but there are just too many question marks and potential concerns right now.
Can Skjei, who’s skilled but had a nightmare first season in Nashville, bounce back? Will Hague, who’s going to miss the start of the season due to injury, break out as a legitimate top-four player, or will he struggle after years of playing third-pair minutes in Vegas? Will Josi, at 35 and coming off a scary POTS diagnosis last season, still play like one of the best defensemen in the league?
We like some of Nashville’s depth pieces like Wilsby and Blankenburg, and it’ll be interesting to see if Molendyk makes an NHL impact this year, but this blue line lacks surefire bets in the top four.
New York Islanders
Alexander Romanov – Anthony DeAngelo
Adam Pelech – Ryan Pulock
Matthew Schaefer – Scott Mayfield
Extra: Adam Boqvist
How much will they miss Noah Dobson? Last year may not have been his best, but that’s a massive subtraction for a back end that is in transition as it awaits Schaefer’s ascendance to a high-end No. 1 D in the coming years.
The Islanders do boast one excellent defensive option in Pelech, and Romanov has matured into a solid two-way D who can eat more than 20 minutes a night.
The rest of the cast comes with big question marks after injuries and inconsistency plagued this group last season. If Schaefer can make a strong early impact to get into Calder contention and Pulock can bounce back, however, there’s certainly room for upside here.
Calgary Flames
Joel Hanley – MacKenzie Weegar
Kevin Bahl – Rasmus Andersson
Brayden Pachal – Zayne Parekh
Extras: Jake Bean, Daniil Miromanov
Andersson’s future and Parekh’s immediate impact are wild cards that will heavily sway this blue line’s performance.
We rated Calgary’s backend with Andersson still on it, but there’s a high probability that he gets dealt at some point — Flames captain Mikael Backlund publicly admitted as much. Andersson isn’t as dominant as he used to be, but it’d still be a significant short-term blow to Calgary’s top-four to potentially lose him.
If Parekh, an elite 19-year-old prospect, can even be 70 percent of what Lane Hutson was last year, the Flames could still ice a competitive backend, though, since Weegar is an underrated No. 1 and because Bahl emerged as a serviceable top-four option last season as well.
Los Angeles Kings
Mikey Anderson – Drew Doughty
Joel Edmundson – Brandt Clarke
Brian Dumoulin – Cody Ceci
Extras: Jacob Moverare, Samuel Bolduc
The Kings’ blue line was once one of the deepest in the NHL, but it’s deteriorated to the point where it looks vulnerable.
Matt Roy, Sean Durzi, and Sean Walker all went elsewhere in recent years. Vladislav Gavrikov’s free-agency exit this summer leaves a massive hole (he was arguably their most valuable defenseman last year), Drew Doughty’s age is starting to show at 35, and by trading Jordan Spence, the club lost a quality depth puck-mover.
A bottom-four featuring Edmundson, Ceci, and Dumoulin seems redundant stylistically and problematic from a foot speed, puck-moving, and offensive skill perspective. Clarke potentially breaking out would be a game-changer for L.A.’s backend, but there’s no guarantee that he’ll earn the coaching staff’s trust defensively this season, especially because young players’ development isn’t always linear.
It’s a good thing that the Kings’ forward group is such a strength because the D core certainly looks dicey.
Philadelphia Flyers
Cam York – Travis Sanheim
Nick Seeler – Jamie Drysdale
Egor Zamula – Noah Juulsen
Extras: Rasmus Ristolainen (IR), Emil Andrae, Helge Grans
There are some interesting pieces here for new coach Rick Tocchet to work with. Sanheim, Seeler and York are all very capable defensive options and underrated overall, likely because the goaltending in Philadelphia has been such a hot mess behind them. Even Ristolainen has bounced back after some difficult seasons playing too high in the lineup.
However, two things hold the Flyers back from a higher ranking here: The jury remains out on Drysdale’s potential, and Philadelphia lacks a No. 1 offensive D. But with Tocchet’s structure and more saves behind them, this group could be surprisingly stingy defensively.
Detroit Red Wings
Ben Chiarot – Moritz Seider
Albert Johansson – Simon Edvinsson
Erik Gustafsson – Jacob Bernard-Docker
Extras: Justin Holl, Travis Hamonic
We are big believers in Edvinsson’s potential, something he flashed more and more late in the year. And Seider’s step forward was pivotal, too, for the Yzerplan to finally bear fruit.
But they’re otherwise surrounded by a ton of question marks on a back end that has too many overpaid, mistake-prone types who have been dumped by better teams.
Airlifting in Hamonic as part of the answer raises additional red flags given his well-documented recent struggles.
Seattle Kraken
Vince Dunn – Adam Larsson
Jamie Oleksiak – Brandon Montour*
Ryan Lindgren – Ryker Evans*
Extras: Cale Fleury, Josh Mahura
Seattle’s D core has respectable names who can hold their own, but it’s a mediocre group lacking in star talent and actual difference-makers.
Dunn hasn’t been able to sustain the 14-goal, 64-point breakout from 2022-23 where he looked like a potential No. 1 defenseman, while Larsson and Oleksiak have both lost a step compared to 2-3 years ago.
Montour shined in his first season with the Kraken, but there isn’t much else to write home about. The Lindgren signing ($4.5 million x four years) was puzzling given his injury woes and declining play. Evans, 23, has interesting upside as a puck-mover, but he’s expected to miss the first several weeks of the season with an injury.
A renaissance with the Penguins seems unlikely for 35-year-old Erik Karlsson, left. (Charles LeClaire / Imagn Images)
Tier 5: Rebuilding/Needs improvementAnaheim Ducks
Jackson LaCombe – Radko Gudas
Olen Zellweger – Jacob Trouba
Pavel Mintyukov – Drew Helleson
Extras: Ian Moore, Tristan Luneau
We debated bumping the Ducks up a tier because of LaCombe’s breakout last season, but there isn’t quite enough surefire, high-end talent around him yet to justify that. The top-four right side isn’t pretty with Gudas and Trouba, a couple of physical, hard-nosed veterans who are serviceable, but likely to get caved in with high-leverage roles.
Mintyukov and Zellweger could take significant steps this year, especially with Anaheim’s coaching change. They’re legitimate blue-chip talents in their early 20s. It’s very possible that the Ducks’ blue line could outperform this Tier 6 rating if those two can meaningfully break out.
Chicago Blackhawks
Alex Vlasic* – Sam Rinzel
Wyatt Kaiser – Artyom Levshunov
Nolan Allan – Connor Murphy
Extras: Matt Grzelcyk, Louis Crevier, Ethan Del Mastro, Kevin Korchinski
This Hawks blue line has some exciting young talent to keep an eye on, with both Rinzel and Levshunov expected to step into big roles.
Rinzel dazzled in nine games late last year, averaging more than 23 minutes. The 21-year-old first-round pick will likely be Chicago’s go-to offensive option and could become a Calder Trophy contender. Levshunov, the No. 2 pick in 2024, also showed some promise in his 18-game NHL cameo last season.
Chicago’s backend has a bright long-term future, but the young D will inevitably experience some growing pains because of their inexperience, and the group lacks established, high-end players besides Vlasic.
San Jose Sharks
Mario Ferraro – Timothy Liljegren
Nick Leddy – John Klingberg
Shakir Mukhamadullin – Dmitry Orlov
Extras: Sam Dickinson, Vincent Desharnais, Jack Thompson, Luca Cagnoni
The floor for San Jose’s back end is higher than last year, when it iced multiple players who shouldn’t have been everyday NHL defensemen. However, this is still a group that lacks even a single true top-pair defenseman.
Our eyes will be on elite 19-year-old prospect Sam Dickinson and Shakir Mukhamadullin. It’d be a really encouraging sign for the future if those two, who figure to be integral parts of San Jose’s core, perform well as full-time NHLers.
Pittsburgh Penguins
Ryan Shea – Erik Karlsson
Kris Letang – Connor Clifton
Owen Pickering – Matt Dumba
Extras: Ryan Graves, Parker Wotherspoon, Alexander Alexeyev
Kyle Dubas’ controversial de-build has stripped the Penguins’ back end fairly well at this point, something that will be a key factor in making them contenders in the Gavin McKenna sweepstakes this year.
Letang will turn 39 later this season, and Karlsson isn’t far behind at 35, so expecting any kind of a renaissance here feels unwise. Especially considering that a veteran selloff is likely coming at some point before the trade deadline.
Maybe Sid wants to take a spin on the blue line to help things out?